Over the past two decades, he has initiated a number of major programs in environment and development, especially in Southeast Asia and North America. He has held management and advisory positions with research councils, universities, foundations, international development agencies and banks, and non-governmental organizations.

From 1978 to 1991 he was Professor of Environmental Studies at Dalhousie University (Halifax) and was Director of the School for Resource and Environmental Studies for a decade. Prior to that he worked for five years with the Ford Foundation in Indonesia. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in the field of Fisheries Ecology and Natural Resources, a M.Sc. in Zoology / Fisheries and a BSc (First Class Hon) in Zoology from the University of British Columbia.